Customized mute in a videoconference based on context

ABSTRACT

System and method for user interfaces using remote control devices. More specifically, these user interfaces may be particularly useful for providing an intuitive and user friendly interaction between a user and a device or application using a display, e.g., at a “10 foot” interaction level. The user interfaces may be specifically designed for interaction using a simple remote control device having a limited number of inputs. For example, the simple remote control may include directional inputs (e.g., up, down, left, right), a confirmation input (e.g., ok), and possibly a mute input. These user interfaces may allow a user to quickly browse and filter lists of items, efficiently provide input (e.g., having multiple data types), customize directional and/or mute functionality of the remote control, perform camera control (e.g., for videoconferencing), etc.

PRIORITY CLAIM

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 13/327,995titled “Customizing a Mute Input of a Remote Control Device” and filedDec. 16, 2011, whose inventor was Wayne E. Mock and which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety as though fully and completelyset forth herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to user interfaces and, morespecifically, to a user interface for a display using a simple remotecontrol.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

In recent years, various devices which operate using a display haveproliferated, particularly those associated with larger displays, e.g.,for entertainment or videoconferencing. For example, there are currentlymany different types of gaming consoles, set top units, digital videorecorders (DVRs), cable boxes, videoconferencing units, etc., all ofwhich provide video signals to a video display, e.g., within a livingroom or conferencing room. Typically, these devices ship with remotecontrol devices that are overly complex and frustrating to users. Forexample, current videoconferencing units often have associated remotecontrol devices where individual buttons have overloaded functionalitythat is not apparent or ergonomic to a lay user. Accordingly, the useris often forced to look between the presented user interface on thedisplay and the buttons on the remote control device multiple times toperform even simple tasks.

Thus, improvements in interactions between users and user interfaces aredesired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Various embodiments are presented of a system and method for userinterfaces using remote control devices. More specifically, these userinterfaces may be particularly useful for providing an intuitive anduser friendly interaction between a user and a device or applicationusing a display, e.g., at a “10 foot” interaction level.

In some embodiments, the user interfaces may be specifically designedfor interaction using a simple remote control device. A “simple remotecontrol device” may have a limited number of inputs and may be usable bythe user without requiring the user to look at the remote control deviceduring use. For example, the simple remote control device may have fewerthan 8 inputs (e.g., 6 inputs). In one specific embodiment, the simpleremote control may include directional inputs (e.g., up, down, left,right), a confirmation input (e.g., ok), and possibly a mute input.

Accordingly, the user interfaces may be designed with the simple remotecontrol device in mind, thereby allowing a user to quickly andintuitively interact with the device or application without having tounderstand the functions provided by a complex remote control havingoverloaded functionality, as is typical in current systems.

As discussed below, these user interfaces may allow a user to quicklybrowse and filter lists of items, efficiently provide input (e.g.,having multiple data types), customize directional and/or mutefunctionality of the remote control, perform camera control (e.g., forvideoconferencing), etc.

The embodiments discussed herein may generally be usable for any userinterfaces provided on displays, particularly those presented on largerdisplays that is not immediately proximate to the user (e.g., fordisplays 10 feet away). These user interfaces may be used for set topboxes (e.g., for watching television shows, movies, sports, etc.),gaming consoles, videoconferencing devices, home theatre PCs (HTPCs) orassociated applications executing on the HTPCs, etc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A better understanding of the present invention may be obtained when thefollowing detailed description is considered in conjunction with thefollowing drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate exemplary systems, according to variousembodiments;

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary simple remote control device forinteracting with user interfaces, according to an embodiment;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are flowchart diagrams illustrating embodiments of amethod for providing a user interface for a simple remote controldevice;

FIGS. 6A-6F illustrate exemplary interfaces corresponding to FIGS. 4 and5, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart diagram illustrating an embodiment of a method forbrowsing and filtering a list of items using a remote control device;

FIGS. 8A-8G illustrate exemplary interfaces corresponding to FIG. 7,according to one embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart diagram illustrating an embodiment of a method forreceiving input having a plurality of data types using a remote controldevice;

FIGS. 10A-10I illustrate exemplary interfaces corresponding to FIG. 9,according to one embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart diagram illustrating an embodiment of a methodfor controlling a camera using a remote control device;

FIGS. 12A-12H illustrate exemplary interfaces corresponding to FIG. 11,according to one embodiment;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart diagram illustrating an embodiment of a methodfor customizing directional input of a remote control device;

FIGS. 14A-14F illustrate exemplary interfaces corresponding to FIG. 13,according to one embodiment;

FIG. 15 is a flowchart diagram illustrating an embodiment of a methodfor customizing mute input of a remote control device; and

FIGS. 16A-16C illustrate exemplary interfaces corresponding to FIG. 15,according to one embodiment.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way ofexample in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. Itshould be understood, however, that the drawings and detaileddescription thereto are not intended to limit the invention to theparticular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is tocover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appendedclaims. Note the headings are for organizational purposes only and arenot meant to be used to limit or interpret the description or claims.Furthermore, note that the word “may” is used throughout thisapplication in a permissive sense (i.e., having the potential to, beingable to), not a mandatory sense (i.e., must). The term “include”, andderivations thereof, mean “including, but not limited to”. The term“coupled” means “directly or indirectly connected”.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS Incorporation by Reference

U.S. patent application titled “Video Conferencing System Transcoder”,Ser. No. 11/252,238, which was filed Oct. 17, 2005, whose inventors areMichael L. Kenoyer and Michael V. Jenkins, is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety as though fully and completely set forthherein.

U.S. patent application titled “Virtual Decoders”, Ser. No. 12/142,263,which was filed Jun. 19, 2008, whose inventors are Keith C. King andWayne E. Mock, is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety asthough fully and completely set forth herein.

U.S. patent application titled “Video Conferencing Device which PerformsMulti-way Conferencing”, Ser. No. 12/142,340, whose inventors are KeithC. King and Wayne E. Mock, is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety as though fully and completely set forth herein.

U.S. patent application titled “Conferencing System Utilizing a MobileCommunication Device as an Interface”, Ser. No. 12/692,915, whoseinventors are Keith C. King and Matthew K. Brandt, is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety as though fully and completelyset forth herein.

U.S. patent application titled “Controlling a Videoconference Based onContext of Touch-Based Gestures”, Ser. No. 13/171,292, which was filedon Jun. 28, 2011, whose inventor is Wayne E. Mock is hereby incorporatedby reference in its entirety as though fully and completely set forthherein.

TERMS

The following is a glossary of terms used in the present application:

Memory Medium—Any of various types of memory devices or storage devices.The term “memory medium” is intended to include an installation medium,e.g., a CD-ROM, floppy disks, or tape device; a computer system memoryor random access memory such as DRAM, DDR RAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, RambusRAM, etc.; or a non-volatile memory such as a magnetic media, e.g., ahard drive, or optical storage. The memory medium may comprise othertypes of memory as well, or combinations thereof. In addition, thememory medium may be located in a first computer in which the programsare executed, or may be located in a second different computer whichconnects to the first computer over a network, such as the Internet. Inthe latter instance, the second computer may provide programinstructions to the first computer for execution. The term “memorymedium” may include two or more memory mediums which may reside indifferent locations, e.g., in different computers that are connectedover a network.

Carrier Medium—a memory medium as described above, as well as a physicaltransmission medium, such as a bus, network, and/or other physicaltransmission medium that conveys signals such as electrical,electromagnetic, or digital signals.

Computer System—any of various types of computing or processing systems,including a personal computer system (PC), mainframe computer system,workstation, network appliance, Internet appliance, personal digitalassistant (PDA), smart phone, television system, grid computing system,or other device or combinations of devices. In general, the term“computer system” can be broadly defined to encompass any device (orcombination of devices) having at least one processor that executesinstructions from a memory medium.

Automatically—refers to an action or operation performed by a computersystem (e.g., software executed by the computer system) or device (e.g.,circuitry, programmable hardware elements, ASICs, etc.), without userinput directly specifying or performing the action or operation. Thusthe term “automatically” is in contrast to an operation being manuallyperformed or specified by the user, where the user provides input todirectly perform the operation. An automatic procedure may be initiatedby input provided by the user, but the subsequent actions that areperformed “automatically” are not specified by the user, i.e., are notperformed “manually”, where the user specifies each action to perform.For example, a user filling out an electronic form by selecting eachfield and providing input specifying information (e.g., by typinginformation, selecting check boxes, radio selections, etc.) is fillingout the form manually, even though the computer system must update theform in response to the user actions. The form may be automaticallyfilled out by the computer system where the computer system (e.g.,software executing on the computer system) analyzes the fields of theform and fills in the form without any user input specifying the answersto the fields. As indicated above, the user may invoke the automaticfilling of the form, but is not involved in the actual filling of theform (e.g., the user is not manually specifying answers to fields butrather they are being automatically completed). The presentspecification provides various examples of operations beingautomatically performed in response to actions the user has taken.

FIG. 1—Exemplary Entertainment System

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an entertainment system,e.g., for use in a user's living room. As shown, a display 101 may beused to display video of various devices or components, such as device102. The device 102 may be any of various devices, e.g., gaming consoles(such as Xbox™ provided by Microsoft, Playstation™ provided by Sony,Wii™ provided by Nintendo, etc.), computer systems (e.g., HTPCs),digital video recorders (DVRs), streaming devices, cable or satellitedevices (e.g., for viewing cable or satellite programming), set topboxes, videoconferencing devices, etc. The device 102 may include logic(e.g., processor(s) and memory medium(s) storing program instructions,and/or circuitry) for providing video signals to the display 101 forinteraction by the user. The device 102 may be configured to providevarious user interfaces for interaction by a remote control device onthe display, as described herein.

Typically, the device 102 may be configured to perform a dedicatedfunction. For example, a videoconferencing device's dedicatedfunctionality may be to perform videoconferencing. Similarly, a gamingconsole's dedicated functionality may be to execute games. Accordingly,in some embodiments, the user interfaces described herein may beseparate from the dedicated functionality. For example, in the case of avideoconference, various user interfaces may be presented forconfiguring the device or initiating/setting up videoconferences asopposed to actually performing the videoconference. Similarly, gamingconsoles may have various user interfaces which are provided outside ofthe context of playing games (e.g., for social functions, set up,purchasing, etc.). As another example, a set top box may be provided forproviding content and may have a user interface for selecting among avariety of content choices. Thus, in this example, the dedicatedfunctionality may be providing the content and the user interfaces maybe external to that dedicated functionality (although it may be used toselect the content to be viewed).

In some embodiments, the display may include logic for performing any ofthe functionality described above. For example, the display may includea processor and memory medium for providing user interfaces as discussedherein, as well as any dedicated functionality described above. Furthertypes of user interfaces, dedicated functionality, devices, etc. areenvisioned.

Additionally, note that more than one device 102 may be coupled to thedisplay. For example, each device may provide its own video signals tothe display and the user may choose which of the device's video signalsto display. Further, other devices may also be included, such as areceiver and speakers, video camera, etc.

FIG. 2—Exemplary Videoconferencing Participant Location

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a videoconferencingparticipant location, also referred to as a videoconferencing endpointor videoconferencing system. The videoconferencing unit may beconfigured to perform embodiments described herein, such as theprovision of various user interfaces. The videoconferencing system 103may have a system codec (or videoconferencing unit) 109 to manage both aspeakerphone 105/107 and videoconferencing hardware, e.g., camera 104,display 101, speakers 171, 173, 175, etc. The speakerphones 105/107 andother videoconferencing system components may be coupled to the codec109 and may receive audio and/or video signals from the system codec109.

In some embodiments, the participant location may include camera 104(e.g., an HD camera) for acquiring images (e.g., of participant 114) ofthe participant location. Other cameras are also contemplated. Theparticipant location may also include display 101 (e.g., an HDTVdisplay). Images acquired by the camera 104 may be displayed locally onthe display 101 and/or may be encoded and transmitted to otherparticipant locations in the videoconference. In some embodiments,images acquired by the camera 104 may be encoded and transmitted to amultipoint control unit (MCU), which then provides the encoded stream toother participant locations (or videoconferencing endpoints).

The participant location may further include one or more input devices,such as the computer keyboard 140. In some embodiments, the one or moreinput devices may be used for the videoconferencing system 103 and/ormay be used for one or more other computer systems at the participantlocation, as desired.

The participant location may also include a sound system 161. The soundsystem 161 may include multiple speakers including left speakers 171,center speaker 173, and right speakers 175. Other numbers of speakersand other speaker configurations may also be used. The videoconferencingsystem 103 may also use one or more speakerphones 105/107 which may bedaisy chained together.

In some embodiments, the videoconferencing system components (e.g., thecamera 104, display 101, sound system 161, and speakerphones 105/107)may be coupled to a system codec 109. The system codec 109 may be placedon a desk or on the floor. Other placements are also contemplated. Thesystem codec 109 may receive audio and/or video data from a network,such as a LAN (local area network) or the Internet. The system codec 109may send the audio to the speakerphone 105/107 and/or sound system 161and the video to the display 101. The received video may be HD videothat is displayed on the HD display. The system codec 109 may alsoreceive video data from the camera 104 and audio data from thespeakerphones 105/107 and transmit the video and/or audio data over thenetwork to another conferencing system, or to an MCU for provision toother conferencing systems. The conferencing system may be controlled bya participant or user through various mechanisms, such as a remotecontrol device, described herein. The remote control device may beimplemented with a plurality of inputs, such as physical buttons and/orwith a touch interface. In some embodiments, the remote control devicemay be implemented as a portion of other videoconferencing devices, suchas the speakerphones 107 and/or 105, and/or as a separate device. FIG. 3provides an exemplary embodiment of simple remote control device.

In various embodiments, the codec 109 may implement a real timetransmission protocol. In some embodiments, the codec 109 (which may beshort for “compressor/decompressor” or “coder/decoder”) may comprise anysystem and/or method for encoding and/or decoding (e.g., compressing anddecompressing) data (e.g., audio and/or video data). For example,communication applications may use codecs for encoding video and audiofor transmission across networks, including compression andpacketization. Codecs may also be used to convert an analog signal to adigital signal for transmitting over various digital networks (e.g.,network, PSTN, the Internet, etc.) and to convert a received digitalsignal to an analog signal. In various embodiments, codecs may beimplemented in software, hardware, or a combination of both. Some codecsfor computer video and/or audio may utilize MPEG, Indeo™, and Cinepak™,among others.

In some embodiments, the videoconferencing system 103 may be designed tooperate with normal display or high definition (HD) displaycapabilities. The videoconferencing system 103 may operate with networkinfrastructures that support T1 capabilities or less, e.g., 1.5mega-bits per second or less in one embodiment, and 2 mega-bits persecond in other embodiments.

Note that the videoconferencing system(s) described herein may bededicated videoconferencing systems (i.e., whose purpose is to providevideoconferencing) or general purpose computers (e.g., IBM-compatiblePC, Mac, etc.) executing videoconferencing software (e.g., a generalpurpose computer for using user applications, one of which performsvideoconferencing). A dedicated videoconferencing system may be designedspecifically for videoconferencing, and is not used as a general purposecomputing platform; for example, the dedicated videoconferencing systemmay execute an operating system which may be typically streamlined (or“locked down”) to run one or more applications to providevideoconferencing, e.g., for a conference room of a company. In otherembodiments, the videoconferencing system may be a general use computer(e.g., a typical computer system which may be used by the general publicor a high end computer system used by corporations) which can execute aplurality of third party applications, one of which providesvideoconferencing capabilities. Videoconferencing systems may be complex(such as the videoconferencing system shown in FIG. 1) or simple (e.g.,a user computer system with a video camera, input devices, microphoneand/or speakers). Thus, references to videoconferencing systems,endpoints, etc. herein may refer to general computer systems whichexecute videoconferencing applications or dedicated videoconferencingsystems. Note further that references to the videoconferencing systemsperforming actions may refer to the videoconferencing application(s)executed by the videoconferencing systems performing the actions (i.e.,being executed to perform the actions).

As described herein, the videoconferencing system 103 may executevarious videoconferencing application software that presents a graphicaluser interface (GUI) on the display 101. The GUI may be used to presentan address book, contact list, list of previous callees (call list)and/or other information indicating other videoconferencing systems thatthe user may desire to call to conduct a videoconference. The GUI mayalso present options for recording a current videoconference, and mayalso present options for viewing a previously recorded videoconference.

Note that the videoconferencing system shown in FIG. 2 may be modifiedto be an audioconferencing system. For example, the audioconferencecould be performed over a network, e.g., the Internet, using VOIP.Additionally, note that any reference to a “conferencing system” or“conferencing systems” may refer to videoconferencing systems oraudioconferencing systems (e.g., teleconferencing systems). In theembodiments described below, the conference is described as avideoconference, but note that the methods may be modified forutilization in an audioconference.

When performing a videoconference, the various videoconferencing systemsmay be coupled in a variety of manners. For example, thevideoconferencing systems may be coupled over wide area networks (e.g.,such as the Internet) and/or local area networks (LANs). The networksmay be wired or wireless as desired. During a videoconference, variousones of the videoconferencing units may be coupled using disparatenetworks. For example, two of the videoconferencing systems may becoupled over a LAN while others of the videoconference are coupled overa wide area network. Additionally, the communication links between thevideoconferencing units may be implemented in a variety of manners, suchas those described in the patent applications incorporated by referenceabove.

FIG. 3—Exemplary Remote Control Device

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary remote control device 150 which may beused to implement various embodiments described herein. In thisparticular example, the remote control device 150 is a simple remotecontrol device having relatively few inputs. As shown, the remotecontrol device 150 includes directional inputs (up, down, left, right),a confirmation input (ok), and a mute input. Note that these inputs maybe implemented as physical buttons, in a touch interface (e.g., withhaptic or other physical feedback and/or physical features indicatingthe locations of the inputs), or in any other desirable manner.Generally, the simple remote control device 150 may be implemented in amanner that allows the user to use the remote control device 150 withouthaving to look at the remote control device 150. More specifically, theremote control device 150 may be implemented such that a user may lookat the remote control device 150 and begin to use the remote controldevice 150 without requiring further analysis of inputs or layout (e.g.,due to its simplicity). This design may allow the user to visually focusonly on the display 101 rather than dividing visual focus between thedisplay 101 and the remote control device 150. Accordingly, inconjunction with a properly designed user interface may lead to a moreefficient and pleasant user experience.

While only six inputs are shown in FIG. 3, more or fewer inputs may beused. For example, an additional menu input (e.g., for accessing orclearing menus), power input (e.g., for turning a device on or off),etc. may be added. However, while additional inputs are contemplated,for a simple remote control device, fewer than 8 or 10 inputs may bedesired so that the user can easily remember the location and purpose ofeach input without requiring visual analysis. Simple remote controldevices may typically avoid having dedicated alphanumeric inputs. Morecomplex remote control devices are also envisioned (e.g., having morethan 8 or 10 inputs), but design must be carefully implemented in orderto overcome the typical deficiencies of complex remotes noted above.

Additionally, while the remote 150 may be particularly devoted toembodiments concerning videoconferencing (e.g., where a mute input isgenerally desirable) other features may be more desirable for othertypes of devices or applications. For example, the mute input may bereplaced by a menu input, a power on/off input, or may simply beremoved, among other possibilities.

Following Descriptions

The following Figures and paragraphs describe various embodiments ofuser interfaces that may be used with the systems of FIGS. 1 and 2 aswell as the remote control device of FIG. 3, although variations areenvisioned. In one embodiment, these user interfaces may be usedtogether within a larger user interface or menu system, such as shown inthe exemplary user interface Figures. In the below, an embodiment ofuser interface (e.g., a feature of the menu system) may be describedfollowed by descriptions of Figures showing an example of such a userinterface. These user interfaces are only provided as examples of thedescribed methods.

FIG. 4—Providing a User Interface for a Simple Remote Control Device

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing a userinterface having multiple items in a row. The method shown in FIG. 4 maybe used in conjunction with any of the computer systems or devices shownin the above Figures, among other devices. In various embodiments, someof the method elements shown may be performed concurrently, performed ina different order than shown, or omitted. Additional method elements mayalso be performed as desired. As shown, this method may operate asfollows.

In 402, a first row of items (e.g., icons) may be displayed on adisplay. For example, the first row of items may be displayed as ahorizontal row in a top portion of the display. However, in alternateembodiments, the row may be a vertical row, e.g., displayed along a sideof the display.

Each of the items may be selectable to perform a function. The functionmay be any of a variety of functions. For example, an item may beselectable to perform an action related to the respective item, e.g.,such as activating a “do not disturb” state, entering a “sleep” state,beginning a presentation, etc. Alternatively, the item may be selectableto cause a second row of items related to the respective item to bedisplayed, as discussed below with respect to the method of FIG. 5.Further, the item may be selected to generate a list related to therespective item (e.g., each of which may be selectable to perform anaction). Examples of these functions are provided and described in moredetail below.

In 404, an element selection item (or “selection item”) may be displayedat a first location on the display. Initially, a first item of the firstrow may be shown at the first location. More specifically, the selectionitem may indicate that the first item is currently selected. Theselection item may be any visual indication that an element (in thiscase, the first item) is selected. In one embodiment, the selection itemmay be an icon that is displayed around or over a currently selecteditem to indicate that the item is selected. Additionally oralternatively, the selection item may be any visual indication of anitem, such as highlighting of the item, increased size of the item, textaccompanying the item, and/or animation of the item, among otherpossibilities.

In some embodiments, the selection item may include smaller icons, suchas arrows (e.g., with animations, such as “bouncing” animations), whichindicate the resulting actions of inputs of the remote control. Forexample, for a top level row (e.g., the initially displayed row that hasno parent row), there may be no up arrow icon (assuming a top levelhorizontal row), but there may be left and right arrow icons indicatingthat the user can select items to the left or right. Thus, the selectionitem may provide visual indications of user input that may be receivedand/or the result of that input. Further examples of this behavior willbe discussed below.

In 406, directional input may be received to associate the selectionitem with a second item in the first row of items. For example, a usermay use a remote control device to provide the directional input (e.g.,selecting up, down, left, or right inputs on the remote control device).More specifically, where the row is displayed as a horizontal row on thedisplay, the directional input may be received as horizontal directionalinput (e.g., left or right input) to change from having the first itemselected by the selection item to a second item being selected by theselection item. The second item may be immediately adjacent to the firstitem (e.g., it may be the item immediately to the left or right of thefirst item). Note that the user may wish to select an item that is morethan one item away; however, the user will typically provide eithercontinuous input (e.g., holding down a directional input) or multiplediscrete inputs (e.g., selecting a directional input multiple times) toreach the desired item. Regardless, the input may typically requestimmediately adjacent items to reach the desired item.

In 408, a modified first row of items may be displayed in response tothe directional input. More specifically, the first row of items may bemoved by one item based on the directional input (e.g., in the directionopposite that indicated by the directional input). For example, in 404,the selection item may be positioned over the first item at a centrallocation within the first row. In 406, the user may wish to highlight asecond item to the right of the first item and may accordingly providedirectional input to the right to cause the selection item to indicateselection of the second item. In response, in 408, the first row may beshifted to the left by one item, thereby causing the second item to bedisplayed at the same location as the selection item at the centrallocation of the first row. Thus, in this particular embodiment, theselection item may remain in the same location, while the first itemshifts from its initial location (that of the selection item) to oneposition to the left and the second item shifts from its initiallocation to the location of the selection item.

During this process, an item may disappear on the left side of thescreen and a new item may appear on the right side of the screen,assuming a horizontal row and depending on the number of items in thefirst row. In some embodiments, the items may “wrap” where the left mostitem of the row (whether displayed or not) is adjacent to the right mostitem of the row (whether displayed or not). In a wrapping embodiment, auser may be able to reselect a particular item after providing a numberof directional inputs (e.g., corresponding to the number of items in therow) in the same direction.

Accordingly, based on 408, the first item may no longer be selected andthe second item may become selected. In some embodiments, a transitionanimation may be shown as the row is modified, showing the first itemmoving away from the selection item and the second item moving into theselection item. During the transition, the visual indications indicatingthat the first item is selected may disappear while they appear for thesecond item. For example, the first item may decrease in size while thesecond item increases in size. Additionally, text labeling the firstitem may disappear while text labeling the second item may appear. Anyvisual indications of the selection item may similar disappear from thefirst item and appear for the second item, e.g., in an animated fashion.

Note that in some embodiments, there may be a distinction drawn betweenan item (or icon) being selected and receiving input indicatingacceptance of that item or confirming selection of the item. Forexample, confirmation of a selection (or input indicating acceptance ofan item or selection of the item) may be performed by or in response tothe user selecting an ok or confirmation input (e.g., as shown on theremote control device of FIG. 3). However, confirmation may also includeproviding a particular directional input that indicates confirmation ofa previous selected item (e.g., by pressing the right directional inputfor a selected item displayed in a vertical list). Thus, the particularconfirmation input may be context specific. Note that some functions maybe performed in response to selection (e.g., without confirmation), suchas displaying a submenu, whereas other functions may only be performedin response to confirmation of a selection (e.g., entering a “do notdisturb” state). Generally, in any of the descriptions herein, anydescribed actions may be performed in response to selection orconfirmation of the selection, depending on the embodiment.

FIG. 5—Providing a User Interface for a Simple Remote Control Device

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing a userinterface having multiple rows with multiple items. The method shown inFIG. 5 may be used in conjunction with any of the computer systems ordevices shown in the above Figures, among other devices. In variousembodiments, some of the method elements shown may be performedconcurrently, performed in a different order than shown, or omitted.Additional method elements may also be performed as desired. As shown,this method may operate as follows.

In 502, a first row of items may be displayed at a first row location ona display, similar to 402 above.

In 504, an element selection item (or “selection item”) may be displayedat a first location on the display, similar to 404 above. Also similarto above, a first item of the first row may be shown at the firstlocation. In one embodiment, the first item (in FIG. 5) may have beenselected as the second item as described in the method of FIG. 4.

In 506, a second row of items may be displayed adjacent to (e.g., below)the first row of items, e.g., based on the selection of the first item.For example, the first row of items may be displayed as a horizontal rowof items along the top of the display. The second row of items may bedisplayed as a second horizontal row of items below the first row ofitems. The second row of items may all be associated with or related tothe first item that is currently selected. For example, the second rowof items may act as a submenu for the currently selected item. In someembodiments, the second row of items may be automatically displayed inresponse to selection of the first item. Alternatively, the second rowof items may be displayed in response to confirmation of selection ofthe first item (e.g., and not displayed in response to only selection).

In some embodiments, the second row of items may have a “grayed out” ortransparent appearance compared to the first row. For example, the itemsof the second row may have a higher transparency that the items of thefirst row. This appearance may indicate that the second row of items isnot currently “in focus”, e.g., until the user wishes to select an itemin the second row. Other appearances which convey a similar meaning arealso envisioned.

In 508, directional input may be received to associate the selectionitem with a second item in the second row of items. For example, wherethe rows of items are displayed in a horizontal orientation, and thesecond row is displayed below the first row (although other embodimentsare envisioned), the user may provide down directional input using aremote control to select the second item which may be immediately belowthe first item. Note that the second item may be the item which was lastselected in the second row of items. For example, the user may havepreviously accessed the second row of items and selected one of theitems. Later, the user may have escaped the second row of items (e.g.,by providing up directional input. Accordingly, the item of the secondrow immediately below the first item may be the item that was lastselected in the second row of items. Thus, the second row may be“sticky” and may remain in its last position when redisplayed. However,other embodiments are envisioned where a default item of the second rowof items is displayed immediately below the first item.

In 510, the second row may be displayed at the first row location inresponse to the directional input. More specifically, the second row ofitems may move into the position of the first row of items. The firstrow of items may be removed from the screen. Accordingly, the second rowof items may no longer have a “grayed out” or “transparent” appearancesince it is now in the position of the first row and “in focus”.Additionally, similar to 408 above, the selection item (now indicatingselection of the second item) may remain in the same location (e.g.,centered in the first row location), and the second item may move intothat position. Similar to descriptions above, an animation may be shownto indicate the transition of the second row moving from its originallocation to the first row location.

FIGS. 6A-6F—Exemplary Interfaces Corresponding to FIGS. 4 and 5

FIGS. 6A-6F are exemplary user interfaces which correspond to oneembodiment of the methods of FIGS. 4 and 5. More specifically, theseuser interfaces correspond to an embodiment involving videoconferencing.These graphical user interfaces are provided as examples only and do notlimit any of the embodiments described above.

FIG. 6A illustrates an exemplary user interface where a plurality oficons are shown in a horizontal row across the top of the display. Asshown, a selection item indicates that the “sleep” icon is currentlyselected. In this particular embodiment, the “sleep icon” is enlargedrelative to the other icons in the row and also includes text labelingthe icon (in this case, the text “sleep” is shown below the icon). Theremaining icons that are not currently selected do not have their textshown. Further, the icon is surrounded by a rectangular icon. Below thisselection item is text describing the function or use of the icon (inthis case, the text is “press OK to sleep”). Additionally, left andright arrows are displayed outside the rectangular icon on the left andright, respectively. These icons indicate that the user may providedirectional input to the left and right to select icons to the left andright, respectively. In one embodiment, these icons may be animated,e.g., using a “bouncing” animation. Note that the selection item may beconsidered any of the above visual modifications which visually indicatethat the sleep icon is currently selected.

In addition to the currently selected “sleep” icon, a “help” icon isshown on the left, a “do not disturb” icon is shown to the right, an“information” icon is shown to the right of that icon, a “connection”icon is shown to the right of that icon, and a portion of another iconis shown to the right of that icon. Further, in some embodiments (notshown in these Figures), a background image may be displayed within theuser interface. The first row of icons may be semi-transparent (e.g.,having 5%, 10%, 25%, etc. transparency, although other values areenvisioned).

In FIG. 6A, the user may wish to select the icon immediately to theright of the “sleep” icon (in this particular case, the “do not disturb”icon). Accordingly, the user may provide directional input to the right(by selecting the right directional input of the remote control device)to select that icon. In response, the row of icons may be shifted to theleft in an animated fashion, resulting in FIG. 6B. As discussed above,the visual indications indicating selection of the first icon maydisappear for the first icon and appear for the second icon, (althoughin a manner consistent with the second icon).

As shown in FIG. 6B, the “sleep” icon, which was previously selected,has shifted to the left and is no longer visually indicated by theselection item. More specifically, the icon has decreased in size, doesnot have any associated text, does not have a rectangular icon aroundit, etc. In contrast, the newly selected icon, “do not disturb”, is nowcentered in the row, enlarged, has a label (“do not disturb”), has therectangular icon around it, has left and right icons outside of therectangular icon, and has text describing its use (“press OK to set”).Because all of the icons have decreased shifted, a new “calendar” iconhas appeared as the farthest icon to the right in the row. Additionally,note that the first and second icons of FIGS. 6A and 6B have anassociated action which may be performed in response to confirmation oftheir selection.

In the example of FIG. 6C, the user has provided right directional inputtwice (repeating the shifting actions as in FIGS. 6A and 6B) to selectthe “connections” icon. For this icon, a list or table of items isdisplayed below the first row. As shown, a new down arrow icon is shown,indicating that the user can select items in the list of items. Morespecifically, various users or previous users may login to thevideoconferencing endpoint by selecting the items.

As shown in FIG. 6D, the user has selected the item “Tuesday”—“CaseyKing”, which is visually indicated by a highlight around the box of theitem, as well as the right arrow next to the item (with the text “top”indicating that the user can provide the right directional input to moveto the top of the list) and the text “press OK to login”, indicatingthat confirming the selection will log in “Casey King”. As also shown inFIG. 6D, an up arrow icon is shown below the “connections” icon in therow of icons, indicating that the user can return back to the menu byreaching the top of the list (e.g., by providing the right directionalinput) and pressing the up directional input.

In FIG. 6E, the user has returned to the first row of icons and selectedthe “call” icon. In response to selection of the “call” icon, a secondrow of icons associated with the “call icon” is displayed below thefirst row of icons. For the “call” icon, the user can select left orright directional inputs to select icons to the left or right of the“call” icon or may access the submenu in the second row of icons byselecting the down directional input, as is indicated by the arrow iconsaround the “call” icon. In this case, the icon immediately below the“call” icon is a “directory” icon. As indicated above, the “directory”icon may have been the last icon selected in this submenu and maytherefore remain in the position under the “call” icon. Alternatively,the “directory” icon may be the default icon associated with the “call”icon and may always be displayed underneath the “call” icon when the“call” icon is selected.

In FIG. 6F, the user has selected the down directional input.Accordingly, the second row has now moved into the first or primary rowlocation and the first row has disappeared. At this point, the“directory” icon is indicated as selected by the selection item”. Fromthis point, the user can choose any direction: left to select the iconto the left, right to select the icon to the right, down to access thelist of contacts (in this case, there are 785, as indicated by thescroll bar to the right of the list), and up to access the previous,top-level menu. The fact that the previous upper level menu is a toplevel menu is indicated by the “home” icon next to the up arrow icondisplayed above the rectangle of the selection item. Note further thatthe parent icon is shown on the left (in this case “calls”) indicatingwhich parent icon the submenu belongs to. This icon may be visuallyindicated in a different color and transparency and may remain in thisposition (e.g., may be “static”) regardless of how the user selects thevarious sub-menu icons within the call submenu. As shown in FIG. 6F, thelist of contacts is sorted by first word in alphabetical order.

As can be seen, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6A-6F, the selectionitem generally maintains a constant position for the rows of the userinterface. Accordingly, the user is able focus on a single position ofthe display without having to visually roam the display. Additionally,the user interface provides visual indications of the functions of thevarious inputs of the remote control device for the user, e.g., at ornear the point of focus. Accordingly, the user can quickly performdesired actions without encountering confusion.

FIG. 7—Browsing and Filtering a Plurality of Items

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing a userinterface for browsing and filtering a plurality of items using a remotecontrol device. The method shown in FIG. 7 may be used in conjunctionwith any of the computer systems or devices shown in the above Figures,among other devices. In various embodiments, some of the method elementsshown may be performed concurrently, performed in a different order thanshown, or omitted. Additional method elements may also be performed asdesired. As shown, this method may operate as follows.

In 702, at least a portion of an alphabet may be displayed on a firstportion of a display. Additionally, a list of items may be displayed ona second portion of the display. For example, the list of items may becontacts, e.g., for performing a videoconference, although any list ofitems that a user wishes to select from is envisioned.

In one embodiment, the list of items may be a full list of the items(e.g., none of the items may be initially filtered). The list of itemsmay be sorted, e.g., alphabetically, although other types of sorting areenvisioned. In one specific example, the list of items may be sortedalphabetically, e.g., by the first word, first name, last name, etc. ofeach item. The alphabet (or portion thereof) may be used to quicklybrowse the list of items, as discussed below. In some embodiments, thealphabet may not be initially displayed. For example, the list of itemsmay be initially displayed and user input (e.g., directional input) maybe received to spawn the alphabet list interface element. Alternatively,the alphabet interface element may be displayed with the list of itemsby default. Generally, the user may be able to either browse through thelist of items (e.g., based on directional input) or browse through eachletter in the alphabet.

In 704, first user input selecting a first letter from the alphabet maybe received. For example, the user may use directional input within thealphabet interface (e.g., by moving away from the list of items) and mayselect a letter of the alphabet. In one embodiment, an initial letter(such as “a”) may be selected by default when the user begins using thealphabet interface. The user may provide directional input to selectother letters.

Accordingly, in 706, at least a portion of a list of items whichcorrespond to the first letter may be displayed. As an example, the usermay select the letter “b” in 704. Accordingly, in 706, the list of itemswhich correspond to that letter may be displayed. As a specific example,the list of items may have been initially displayed with items having afirst letter of “a” being displayed (depending on the initial sortorder). Accordingly, after the user selects the letter “b”, thedisplayed portion of the list may be automatically updated to show thoseitems beginning with the letter “b” (e.g., causing the ones beginningwith the letter “a” to no longer be displayed). In one embodiment, theportion may be displayed as a filter (i.e., only those items beginningwith the letter “b” may be displayed, although other requirements, suchas containing “b”, having a word beginning with “b”, having a last namebeginning with “b”, etc. are envisioned). Alternatively, the portion ofthe list may simply be modified to skip to the letter “b” such that thetop entry is the first having the letter “b” according to whicheverrequirement is used (e.g., first letter of first word). Thus, the listof items may not be filtered, but the alphabet may be used to “skip to”that portion of the list.

In 708, second user input indicating acceptance or confirmation of thefirst letter may be received. As discussed above, the acceptance orconfirmation of the first letter is different than the selection of thefirst letter. For example, selecting the first letter may simply involvehighlighting (e.g., while scrolling through the letters) the firstletter using directional input. However, confirmation of the firstletter may involve additional user input after selecting the firstletter. For example, the additional user input may be the user providingconfirmation input, such as pressing an ok input on the remote controldevice or the user providing a directional input (e.g., in a directionorthogonal to scrolling through the alphabet), among otherpossibilities.

In one embodiment, after confirmation of the first letter, a newfiltering mode may be initiated, which is discussed in more detail belowwith respect to 712 (incorporating two letters). Additionally, the userinterface may indicate that the first letter has been confirmed andthere may be a visual indication that selection of a next letter can beprovided (as in 710 below). For example, the first letter may be shownon the display in a field and a cursor or other indicator may be shownnext to the first letter, indicating that input for a second letter maybe received. Additionally, the user may erase or remove confirmation ofthe first letter, e.g., by providing directional input orthogonal to thealphabet (such as providing left input for a vertically alignedalphabet).

In 710, third user input selecting a second letter from the alphabet maybe received. Similar to 706 above, the user may select a new letter, inaddition to the first letter.

In 712, the list of items may be filtered to items which have wordsbeginning with the first and second letter concatenated, and, in 714,that filtered list may be displayed. For example, instead of simply“skipping to” a portion of the list, e.g., as in 706, the list may bereduced in size so as to only display items in the list which meet thecriteria (in this case, items which include words beginning with thefirst and second letter in sequence). Accordingly, the filtered list maybe displayed instead of the full list of items in the second portion ofthe display.

In one specific example, if the user has selected and confirmed “b” andselected “e” for the second letter, the method may determine any itemswhich contain a word that begins with “be”. However, note that this isone embodiment only, and other filtering mechanisms are also possible.For example, the method may only filter for the first word or last wordin the item. Alternatively, the method may filter based on any itemsthat include any instance of the two letters in the specified sequence,regardless of the location of that instance (e.g., there may not be arequirement that words begin with those two letters, only that there issome word that contains those two letters in sequence).

As indicated above, this mode may be entered upon confirmation of thefirst letter in 708. Accordingly, after 708, the list of items may befiltered for any items which include words beginning with the firstletter. Further, note that in one embodiment, the list of items may notbe filtered for the first and second letter until confirmation of thesecond letter. For example, the list may remain as filtered only for thefirst letter even while a second letter is selected, and the filteredlist may only be further filtered after the user has confirmed selectionof the second letter. However, in alternate embodiments, upon enteringthe filtering mode (e.g., once a first letter has been confirmed),selection of a second letter may result in further filtering, evenwithout confirmation of the second letter. However, in this embodiment,confirmation of the second letter may allow for a third letter to beinput. Thus, the user may begin to “type” filtering criteria byselecting and confirming letters using the alphabet interface.

While the above has been described specifically with regard to alphabetsand items including words, similar embodiments may be performed forsearching other types of items or using criteria other than an alphabet.For example, a list of IP addresses could be filtered using a list ofnumbers. Thus, the method may be expanded to apply to any list of itemswith a corresponding interface for selecting and confirming portions ofthose items (e.g., such as numbers for a list including numbered items).Additionally, a combination of types may be used (e.g., numbers andletters) in the interface, as desired.

FIGS. 8A-8G—Exemplary Interfaces Corresponding to FIG. 7

FIGS. 8A-8F are exemplary user interfaces which correspond to oneembodiment of the method of FIG. 7. More specifically, these userinterfaces correspond to an embodiment involving videoconferencing.These graphical user interfaces are provided as examples only and do notlimit any of the embodiments described above.

FIG. 8A illustrates a continuation of the user interface from FIG. 6F.As shown in this Figure, the user has provided down directional inputfrom the directory menu item and has selected the first item in thedirectory—in this case, “Aaron Luft”. As visually indicated in the userinterface, the user may provide the up directional input to return tothe call submenu (with the “directory” icon selected, as shown in FIG.6F). Additionally, the user may skip to the bottom of the list byproviding the right directional input, as indicated by the right arrowicon and the text “bottom”. The interface of FIG. 8A also indicates theposition of the user in the list of items using a scroll bar and thetext “1/785” on the scroll bar. Thus, the user is immediately aware thatthere are 785 entries in this list and he is currently located at thetop. The user may also provide left directional input to invoke a searchtool, shown in FIG. 8B.

More specifically, in FIG. 8B, the user has invoked the search tool (inthis embodiment, by selecting the left directional input of the remotecontrol device) and has selected the letter “D” (e.g., by selecting thedown directional input three times, assuming the alphabet interfaceinitially began at the letter “A”). As shown, the alphabet is displayedin a vertical fashion along the left side of the user interface. Only aportion of the alphabet is shown (A-N) due to size constraints, but theuser may scroll down past “N” to the end of the alphabet as desired (theuser interface may update accordingly). As indicated by the userinterface, the user may scroll up and down by providing the directionalup and directional down inputs to select different letters of thealphabet. Additionally, the user may return to the list of items byproviding the directional right inputs, as indicated by the right arrowicon shown to the right of the selection item, indicating that “D” iscurrently selected.

Because the letter “D” is currently selected, the portion of the userinterface showing the list of items now shows items which have a firstword beginning with the letter “D”. In this particular instance, the topof the portion of the list is “Dan Cullen R220”. The scroll bar haschanged to indicate that this is item 163 of 785 entries. Thus, the userhas skipped to items beginning with the letter “D” by selecting theletter “D” in the alphabet interface. However, as indicated in the userinterface, the user may provide the OK input to search the list ofitems. This feature is indicated first in the selection item and secondin the search field shown on the left of the interface, above thealphabet.

In FIG. 8C, the user has scrolled to the letter “M” in the alphabetinterface, and the list of items has been updated, similar to the letter“D” in FIG. 8B. As shown, the top entry is “Mahesh Jotwani”, which isitem 435 of 785. After this interface, the user has confirmed the letter“M”.

Accordingly, in FIG. 8D, the list of entries has been filtered to onlyshow items which include a word that begin with the letter “M”.Accordingly, the filtered list is only 156 entries (indicated by thescroll bar) rather than the original 785 entries. As also shown in FIG.8D, the user has now selected the letter “O”. However, the list has notbeen filtered to show entries which have words that begin with “MO”because the user has not confirmed the letter “O” yet (although otherembodiments where this confirmation is not necessary for filtering areenvisioned). Note that the interface now also indicates that the usermay delete the letter “M” by providing the left directional input, asindicated by the left arrow and text “delete” shown in the selectionitem.

In FIG. 8E, the user has confirmed selection of the letter “O” and isnow selecting the letter “C”. The list has now been filtered to 22items, which include one or more words which begin with the letters“MO”.

In FIG. 8F, the user has confirmed selection of the letter “C”. Asshown, the list has now been filtered to 4 items, which includes wordswhich begin with the letters “MOC”. As shown, these items include “MockRoom 220” (where the initial word begins with “MOC”), “Wayne Mock”,“Wayne Mock Exp 220”, and “Wayne Mock Team 220” (where words after thefirst word begin with “MOC”).

Finally, in FIG. 8G, the user has provided the right directional inputto return to the list, resulting in selection of the top entry “MockRoom 220”. The user may now select any of the four entries (e.g., tobegin a videoconference call, e.g., after confirmation) or return to thecall submenu, as desired.

FIG. 9—Receiving Input with a Plurality of Data Types

FIG. 9 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing a userinterface for receiving input with a plurality of data types using aremote control device. The method shown in FIG. 9 may be used inconjunction with any of the computer systems or devices shown in theabove Figures, among other devices. In various embodiments, some of themethod elements shown may be performed concurrently, performed in adifferent order than shown, or omitted. Additional method elements mayalso be performed as desired. As shown, this method may operate asfollows.

In 902, elements of a first data type (or “input type”) may be displayedin a first row on a display. For example, the data type may be alphabet,numbers, punctuation, bandwidth, protocol specification, or any of avariety of data types. In one embodiment, the elements of the first datatype may be only displayed in the first row. Additionally, oralternatively, elements of the first row may only be of the first datatype. However, other embodiments are envisioned where more than one datatype is shown in the first row, e.g., but elements of the first datatype are not displayed outside of the first row. In one particularembodiment, the first row may include numbers and possibly elements ofanother data type, such as punctuation or special characters (e.g., “.”,“*”, “#”). The additional data types may be useful for certain types ofinput, e.g., for providing an IP address.

In 904, similar to 902 above, elements of a second data type may bedisplayed on a second row. In one particular embodiment, the second rowmay include alphabet characters, e.g., and no other data type. In someembodiments, the first and second rows may be displayed adjacent to eachother. For example, the first and second rows may be horizontal rows(although vertical rows are also envisioned) and the first row may bedisplayed immediately above the second row. However, these rows may alsobe separated by other user interface elements, as desired.

In addition to the first and second rows, other rows may also bedisplayed, e.g., for other data types. However, the data types in theadditional rows may not be restricted to a single row (although suchembodiments are envisioned). For example, one data type may be spreadacross multiple rows, e.g., due to size. As another example, a certaindata type may have its own dedicated row, but may also be included inother rows. For example, a row may be dedicated for punctuation marks,but punctuation marks may also be included in another row (e.g., thefirst row, for making certain types of user input easier, such asentering IP addresses).

In one embodiment, the rows may each be independent of each other. Forexample, a selection item may be used to indicate current selection ofelements in the rows. As a user moves from one row to the next, theselection item may not move as in a grid. Instead, when moving from rowto row, the selection item may be automatically moved to a certainelement in the next row, regardless of the previously selected elementin the previous row. For example, each row may have a default initialelement, which may be automatically selected when the row is used.Additionally, or alternatively, the last element selected for a row maybe stored such that when the row is used again, that element is selectedagain. Thus, if the user previously selected the third element of thesecond row, when the user moves from the first row to the second row,the third element may be selected, regardless of what element of thefirst row was selected. Thus, the previously selected element of thefirst row and the currently selected element of the second row may notbe vertically aligned. In some embodiments, this independence may evenbe applied to rows which have the same data type (e.g., where a datatype is spread over two rows).

In 906, user input selecting elements of the first data type may bereceived. For example, the user may select an element of the first datatype in the first row using directional input. The user may specify aportion of an input field by confirming various ones of the elements ofthe first data type (e.g., by providing confirmation input).

In 908, user input selecting elements of the second data type may bereceived. Similar to 906, the user may select and confirm variouselements of the second data type in the second row. In one embodiment,the user may specify complete specification of the input field using theelements of the second data type. For example, the user may specify acomplete input to the input field using both elements of the first datatype and the second data type (and/or additional data types), asdesired.

As shown in FIG. 3, the remote control device (e.g., used to specify theuser input) may not include inputs for elements of the first and seconddata type (e.g., may not include inputs for specific number or alphabetcharacters). For example, in one embodiment, the user input in 906 and908 (e.g., to provide the input to a single input field) may be receivedonly using directional inputs and a confirmation input.

In some embodiments, this user interface layout and input method mayoffer significant advantages over present grid input user interfaces. Insuch interfaces, a user may have a plurality of rows for a data type,whose selection is not independent, unlike descriptions above. Forexample, a first row may have the letters “a-i”, a second row may havethe letters “j-q”, and a third row may have the letters “r-z”. Thefirst, second, and third rows may form a grid of letters. When providinguser input using such a grid, a user must determine, for every letter,which row and position each next letter is, compare that position to thecurrent position, and determine a route to reach the next position. Thisprocess is extremely cumbersome and inefficient.

In contrast, when using a single row that is dedicated to the alphabet(as an example), the user merely has to evaluate whether the next letteris before or after the current letter and move accordingly, which ismuch more efficient. Additionally, for letters that are further away(e.g., moving from “a” to “z”), the user may be able to hold a directioninput down (to provide the input continuously) in order to move morequickly across the letters. When using multiple data types, the usermerely has to determine which row has the next data type and move to it.Thus, the user does not have to perform as much processing whenproviding input and is able to provide input in a more efficient manner.

FIGS. 10A-10I—Exemplary Interfaces Corresponding to FIG. 9

FIGS. 10A-10I are exemplary user interfaces which correspond to oneembodiment of the method of FIG. 9. More specifically, these userinterfaces correspond to an embodiment involving videoconferencing.These graphical user interfaces are provided as examples only and do notlimit any of the embodiments described above.

FIG. 10A illustrates an exemplary user interface where the user hasselected the “dialer” icon within the “calls” submenu. As shown, thereis an input field for specifying the number to dial. The number “0” iscurrently selected with a horizontal interface for specifying numbers aswell as other punctuation. In this particular interface, from the leftto right, the elements are: “0”, “1”, “2”, “3”, “4”, “5”, “.”, “6”, “7”,“8”, “9”, “*”, “#”. Thus, this first row includes elements of the datatype “numbers” as well as additional punctuation data types.Accordingly, the user may specify a phone number or IP address bytraversing the first row to the left and to the right and by confirmingselection of various elements in the row. The user may call or deletecharacters using the call or delete icons shown in the Figure.

In FIG. 10B, the user has activated the advanced dialing options byproviding down directional input from the call or delete icons. As shownin FIG. 10B, the element “a” of the initial row (referred to as the“second row”) of the advanced dialing options is currently selected. Inthis example, the second row is dedicated to alphabet characters. Morespecifically, the alphabet characters are all shown on the second rowand are not provided in other rows. As also shown, the third rowincludes punctuation, the fourth and fifth rows are dedicated tobandwidths, and the sixth row is dedicated to communication protocols.

In FIG. 10C, the user has selected and confirmed the “skype:” element ofthe sixth row. Accordingly, “skype:” is shown in the dialer input field.

In FIG. 10D, the user has selected and confirmed the input “jsmith” viathe second row. In this Figure, the letter “h” is currently selected.

In FIG. 10E, the user has erased the “skype:jsmith” input and hasreturned to the first row, with the number “5” being currently selected.

In FIG. 10F, the user has provided the input “6798” via the first rowand returned to the second row. As shown, the letter “h” is currentlyselected since it was the last letter previously selected (as shown inFIG. 10D). Thus, instead of moving to the letter “a” as was the case inFIG. 10B, the selection item is shown for the letter “h” upon enteringthe second row since it was the last character selected.

In FIG. 10G, the user has selected the protocol type “isdn:”.

In FIG. 10H, the user has confirmed the “isdn:” protocol (making theinput field “isdn:6798”) and has selected the bandwidth “1920” kb/s fromthe fourth row.

Finally, in FIG. 10I, the user has selected the “call” icon afterspecifying those elements for the call.

FIG. 11—Controlling a Camera

FIG. 11 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing a userinterface for controlling a camera using a remote control device. Themethod shown in FIG. 11 may be used in conjunction with any of thecomputer systems or devices shown in the above Figures, among otherdevices. In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown maybe performed concurrently, performed in a different order than shown, oromitted. Additional method elements may also be performed as desired. Asshown, this method may operate as follows.

In 1102, a first input control and a second input control forcontrolling pan and tilt or zoom of a camera, respectively, may bedisplayed. More specifically, the first input control for controllingthe pan of the camera may be displayed at a first location in the userinterface (shown on the display) and the second input control forcontrolling the tilt or zoom of the camera may be displayed at a secondlocation in the user interface.

In some embodiments, the first and second input controls may bedisplayed in response to selection of a camera. For example, the usermay select a camera to control from a plurality of various cameras.Accordingly, in response to selection (e.g., and confirmation) of thecamera, the first and second input controls may be displayed.

The first input control may be displayed as an icon in the userinterface. Additionally, the icon may visually indicate that it may beused to control pan and tilt of the camera. For example, the icon mayinclude a picture of a camera with arrows around it to indicate possiblemovement. Similarly, the second input control may be displayed as anicon in the user interface that visually indicates that it may be usedto control the zoom of the camera. For example, the icon may include apicture of a magnifying glass, typically used to indicate zoomfunctionality.

In 1104, first directional input selecting an input control may bereceived. More specifically, in one embodiment, the user may usedirectional input in order to cause the selection item to select one ofthe input controls.

In 1106, user input indicating acceptance of the selected input controlmay be received. For example, after selection in 1104, the user mayprovide input confirming selection of the input control, e.g., via aconfirmation input of the remote control device. Note that the user maybe able to deselect one of these input controls by providingconfirmation input.

In 1108, second directional input to adjust the camera may be received.More specifically, where the user has selected and confirmed the firstinput control, the second directional input may be received to controlthe pan or tilt of the camera. In one embodiment, left and rightdirectional input may be used to control pan of the camera while up anddown directional input may be used to control tilt of the camera.

Similarly, where the user has selected and confirmed the second inputcontrol, the second directional input may be received to control thezoom of the camera. In one embodiment, left and right directional inputmay be used to decrease and increase zoom, respectively. In a particularembodiment, vertical input may be used to change from controlling thezoom to controlling the pan and tilt of the camera, e.g., without havingto deselect the second input control and select the first input control.This change in control may be displayed on the display by changing fromdisplaying the selection item for the second input control to displayingthe selection item for the first input control. Thus, in thisembodiment, the user may be able to quickly switch from controlling thezoom of the camera to controlling the pan and tilt of the camera. Notethat the reverse may not be possible since the first input control mayutilize all directional input for controlling pan and tilt.

Note further that the particular direction of the input may be reversed,e.g., where vertical input is used to control zoom and the horizontalinput is used to switch from the first control to the second control.Additionally, the direction input orthogonal to the control of the zoommay only work in the direction of the first input control relative tothe second input control. For example, where the zoom is controlledusing horizontal directional input and the first input control isdisplayed above the second input control, the switch from the firstcontrol to the second control may only occur when the up directionalinput is provided, although other embodiments are envisioned.

In 1110, the pan and tilt or zoom of the camera may be adjusted based on1008. More specifically, signals may be provided to the camera to causethe camera to adjust its pan, tilt, or zoom, based on the input receivedin 1108.

Note that the method may further include displaying icons for differentcamera presets. The user may select these icons (e.g., using directionalinput) and confirm selection (e.g., by providing confirmation input). Inresponse, the pan and tilt and/or zoom of the camera may be adjusted tothe values represented by the camera presets.

FIGS. 12A-12H—Exemplary Interfaces Corresponding to FIG. 11

FIGS. 12A-12H are exemplary user interfaces which correspond to oneembodiment of the method of FIG. 11. More specifically, these userinterfaces correspond to an embodiment involving videoconferencing.These graphical user interfaces are provided as examples only and do notlimit any of the embodiments described above.

FIG. 12A illustrates an exemplary interface within the “inputs” submenu.As shown, the user has selected the “primary input” item and a list ofpossible inputs are displayed. In this particular example, the inputsare “front camera”, “rear camera”, “blue ray player”, “HDMI 4”, and “PCInput”. The front camera item is currently displayed as being selected,as indicated by the “check” icon and the arrows surrounding theselection icon. By selecting the right directional input, the user mayinvoke input controls for controlling the front camera, as indicated bythe right arrow icon.

FIG. 12B illustrates the corresponding user interface for controllingthe front camera. More specifically, the list of inputs has shifted tothe left of the user interface and a camera control portion has appearedon the right. As shown, the input control for controlling the pan ortilt of the camera is currently selected. Accordingly, there is textunderneath this portion, stating “press OK to pan/tilt”. Below thepan/tilt control is a second input control for controlling zoom of thecamera, as indicated by the magnifying glass icon. Finally, below thatinput control are several icons representing camera presets. Morespecifically, they are shown as numbers within circles that may beselected to move the camera to the corresponding camera preset.

In FIG. 12C, the user has confirmed selection of the pan/tilt control.Accordingly, the icon has changed from a camera icon to a fourdirectional arrows, indicating that the user may provide directionalinput to control the pan and tilt of the camera. As also shown, the text“press OK to cancel” is shown below the icon, indicating that the usermay deselect the icon and release control of the pan and tilt of thecamera by providing confirmation input (although other embodiments wherea cancel input is used are envisioned).

In FIG. 12D, the user has provided left directional input whilecontrolling the pan and tilt of the camera. In response, the camera maypan left (or right, if inverted). Additionally, as shown in the userinterface, an icon showing a left arrow is displayed over the originalcontrol and slightly offset to the left, providing a visual indicationof the feedback the user is providing.

In FIG. 12E, the user has provided confirmation input to ceasecontrolling the pan and tilt of the camera, returning to the state ofFIG. 12B.

In FIG. 12F, the user has selected the zoom input control.

In FIG. 12G, the user has confirmed selection of the zoom input control.As visually indicated in the Figure, the user may provide left or rightinput to zoom in or out, respectively.

In FIG. 12H, the user has provided right directional input to zoom in.Accordingly, the interface indicates this visually by overlaying a “zoomin” icon that is offset to the right of the original icon.

The user may similarly control the “rear camera” following the sameprocess. Additionally, presets may be used by selecting and confirmingvarious ones of the camera preset icons.

FIG. 13—Customizing Directional Input of a Remote Control Device

FIG. 13 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing a userinterface for customizing directional input of a remote control device.The method shown in FIG. 13 may be used in conjunction with any of thecomputer systems or devices shown in the above Figures, among otherdevices. In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown maybe performed concurrently, performed in a different order than shown, oromitted. Additional method elements may also be performed as desired. Asshown, this method may operate as follows.

In 1302, a user interface for customizing directional input of a remotecontrol device may be displayed. This user interface may be accessed ina variety of manners, e.g. using the interface described above, withrespect to FIGS. 4-6F. In one embodiment, the user interface may includea plurality of presets for the directional input. For example, there maybe an icon displayed for each different preset that may be selectable bythe user. Alternatively, or additionally, the user interface may allowthe user to select individual directional inputs (or any inputs) andthen specify a desired action for that directional input, e.g., byselecting from a plurality of desired actions provided in the userinterface. Some combination is also envisioned, e.g., where the userselects a preset and then modifies the preset, such as by changing theassigned actions for one or more of the inputs specified in the preset.The user may also be able to create new presets, e.g., by specifying newpresets manually and/or by modifying an existing preset, as desired.

In 1304, user input specifying first functionality for the directionalinput may be received. Following the embodiments above, the user mayselect one of the presets for the directional input and/or specifydesired actions for one or more of the inputs. This input may involveselection of a preset and then confirmation of the preset.Alternatively, the input may involve selection of a particular input,confirmation of that input, selection of a desired action for thatinput, and/or confirmation of that desired action. Thus, the user mayspecify the behavior for the directional inputs using the userinterface. As discussed below, this behavior may only be invoked whenthe directional inputs are not needed for interaction, e.g., whilededicated functionality is being performed. In other words, whendirectional inputs are required (e.g., when interacting with a userinterface that requires directional input, such as a menu system), theymay function normally; however, when directional inputs are not required(e.g., while dedicated functionality is being performed), they mayfunction according to the first functionality. Thus, the directionalinputs may have a default functionality (providing directional input) ina first context and may have the first functionality in a differentcontext. In some embodiments, this concept may be extended to any numberof contexts. Thus, the user may specify first functionality for a firstcontext, second functionality for a second context, etc.

The first functionality may be any desired functionality. For example,in the case of a videoconference, the functionality may involveassigning inputs for presentations, recording, layouts, volume, cameraadjustments, etc. More specifically, for presentations, one or more ofthe directional inputs may be used to start, stop, navigate forward inthe presentation, and/or navigate backward in the presentation. Forrecording, one or more of the directional inputs may be used to startand/or stop recording. For layouts, one or more of the directionalinputs may be used for particular layout presets (e.g., continuouspresence, various fixed layouts, voice activated switching, etc.).Alternatively, or additionally, one or more of the directional inputsmay be used to navigate through a set of layouts (e.g., using left andright directional inputs for previous and next layouts). The directionalinputs may also be used to increase or decrease volume. For cameracontrol, one or more of the directional inputs may be used to activate acamera preset. Additionally, or alternatively, one or more of thedirectional inputs may be used to control pan, tilt, or zoom of thecontrol. In further embodiments, the directional inputs may be used toshow or hide picture in picture (PIP), caller ID, or other functions, asdesired.

The following provides a few possible presets that may be used forvideoconferencing (e.g., during the videoconference). In a first preset,up may be assigned for entering or exiting a presentation mode, down maybe used to start or stop recording, and left and right may be used toperform layout changes (e.g., navigating a set of layouts and/orindividually assigned presets). In a second preset, up and down may beassigned for increasing and decreasing volume, respectively, and leftand right may be used to make changes to the videoconference layout. Ina third preset, the directional inputs may be assigned to individualcamera presets. In a fourth preset, the directional inputs may controlpan and tilt of a desired camera (note that the user may choose whichcamera may be controlled, e.g., from near or far end cameras). Anydesired combination of actions may be assigned to the directionalinputs.

While the above has been described with respect to videoconferencing, itmay also apply to any desired device or functionality. For example, inthe case of a television, the directional inputs may be assigned tofavorite channels, adjusting volume, invoking picture in picture,recording, etc. As one specific example, the up and down functionalitymay be used for channel switching (next and previous channels) and theleft and right inputs may be used for controlling volume (or viceversa). Thus, in this example, the directional input may be used intheir normal sense while navigating a menu (e.g., a channel selectionmenu), but may adapt this new functionality when the menu is not present(e.g., when presenting content for a particular channel or videosource). Similar embodiments may apply to HTPCs, e.g., which executeapplication(s) for presenting audio/video content. Thus, thisfunctionality is not limited to videoconferencing applications.

In 1306, a new context or state may be entered. For example, dedicatedfunctionality may be performed. More specifically, in the case of avideoconferencing system, a videoconference may be performed. Similarly,in the case of a cable box or set top box, associated content may bedisplayed (e.g., as opposed to a menu system for selecting content).Thus, in 1306, a context may be invoked that does not require thedirectional inputs to be used to indicate directionality, therebyallowing the first functionality to be used instead. Generally, thiscontext may be invoked when dedicated functionality is performed.

In some embodiments, some visual indication of the first functionalityor simply that the first functionality will be performed may be providedon the display. For example, a graphic icon and/or text may be shown ina portion (e.g., a corner or other inconspicuous portion) of the displaywhich may indicate the first functionality. In one embodiment, an iconfor each specified function may be displayed in a location thatcorresponds to each direction (e.g., functionality for the up input maybe shown above functionality for the down input, etc.). Alternatively,an icon or text may indicate that the directional input may performother functionality, e.g., without specifying what that functionalityis. For example, where the directional inputs are used to control acamera, an icon of a camera may be shown. Where the directional inputscontrol multiple different items or functions, icons for each controlleditem or function may be displayed.

In 1308, directional user input from the remote control device may bereceived in the new context (e.g., while performing the dedicatedfunctionality). Accordingly, in 1310, one or more actions may beperformed based on the directional user input and the specified firstfunctionality. For example, during the videoconference, left and rightinputs may be used to select presets, and up and down inputs may be usedto adjust volume, depending on the functionality specified in 1304.Where functionality for a plurality of different contexts is assigned,the method may involve determining the context and then performing theappropriate functionality based on the context.

FIGS. 14A-14F—Exemplary Interfaces Corresponding to FIG. 13

FIGS. 14A-14F are exemplary user interfaces which correspond to oneembodiment of the method of FIG. 13. More specifically, these userinterfaces correspond to an embodiment involving videoconferencing.These graphical user interfaces are provided as examples only and do notlimit any of the embodiments described above.

FIG. 14A illustrate an exemplary user interface where the user hasselected the “hide” icon in the top level menu.

As shown in FIG. 14B, the user has entered the hide submenu. Asindicated in the user interface, the user may “press OK to hide (orrecall) the interface”. To the right, various presets are shown forspecifying extra functionality (e.g., overloaded functionality) of theremote control, e.g., for the directional inputs.

More specifically, in FIG. 14C, the user has selected an icon for hidingthe menu and specifying (or “locking”) functionality for the directionalinputs. In this particular instance, the selected preset associates updirectional input with beginning the presentation, down directionalinput with beginning recording, and left directional input and rightdirectional input for invoking previous and next videoconferencinglayouts, as indicated by the icons and text displayed in the userinterface. As with the previous icon, the user may “press OK to hide (orrecall) the interface”. In this instance, confirming selection will bothhide the menu and associate the visually indicated functionality withthe directional inputs.

FIG. 14D illustrates another preset for directional input. In thispreset, up directional input and down directional input are associatedwith increasing and decreasing volume, respectively, and leftdirectional input and right directional input are associated withprevious and next videoconferencing layouts, respectively.

FIG. 14E illustrates another preset for directional input. In thispreset, each of the directional inputs are associated with differentcamera presets.

Finally, FIG. 14F illustrates a user interface once the user hasselected the preset of FIG. 14C. In this interface, dedicatedfunctionality may be displayed in the main portion of the display (e.g.,videoconferencing content during a videoconference). On the bottom leftof the interface, a key is shown indicating the current functionality ofthe directional input, in this case, icons representing the preset ofFIG. 14C. In addition, on the bottom right, current status icons areshown. In this Figure, the videoconference is currently video and audiomuted, a presentation is being shown, and the videoconference is beingrecorded.

FIG. 15—Customizing Mute Input of a Remote Control Device

FIG. 15 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing a userinterface for customizing a mute input of a remote control device. Themethod shown in FIG. 15 may be used in conjunction with any of thecomputer systems or devices shown in the above Figures, among otherdevices. In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown maybe performed concurrently, performed in a different order than shown, oromitted. Additional method elements may also be performed as desired. Asshown, this method may operate as follows.

In 1502, a user interface for customizing a mute input of a remotecontrol device may be displayed. Similar to 1302 above, this userinterface may be accessed in a variety of manners, e.g. using theinterface described above, with respect to FIGS. 4-6F. In oneembodiment, the user interface may include one or more presets for themute input. For example, there may be an icon displayed for eachdifferent preset that may be selectable by the user. Alternatively, oradditionally, the user interface may allow the user to select one ormore actions to be performed when the mute input is selected. Forexample, the user may toggle one or more actions among a plurality ofactions to be performed when the mute input is selected. Somecombination is also envisioned, e.g., where the user selects a presetand then modifies the preset, such as by changing the assigned actionsfor the mute input. The user may also be able to create new presets,e.g., by specifying new presets manually and/or by modifying an existingpreset, as desired.

In 1504, user input specifying first functionality for the mute inputmay be received. Following the embodiments above, similar to 1304, theuser may select one of the presets for the mute input and/or specifydesired actions for the mute input. This input may involve selection ofa preset and then confirmation of the preset. Alternatively, the inputmay involve selection of a particular action, confirmation of thataction, and/or further selections and confirmations, as desired. Thus,the user may specify the behavior for the mute input using the userinterface.

The specified mute functionality may be used for all contexts (e.g.,since the mute input may not provide any different functionality withina menu system). In other words, the functionality specified in 1504 maybe invoked any time the mute input is provided, regardless of thecontext. However, in alternate embodiments, the mute input functionalitymay be context specific. For example, the mute functionality may have adefault behavior in a first context (e.g., when a user interface isdisplayed) and the specified mute functionality may be used in a secondcontext (e.g., when dedicated functionality is being performed and/orwhen a user interface or menu system is not presented). However, themute input may be fully customizable, e.g., there may be no defaultfunctionality and/or the user may override that functionality. Similarto above, any number of contexts and functionality for those contextsmay be received. For example, the user may specify first mute inputfunctionality for a first context (e.g., within a menu), second muteinput functionality for a second context (e.g., while dedicatedfunctionality is being performed), etc.

In some embodiments, the specified functionality may only correspond tomute actions. For example, the specified functionality may include anycombination of outgoing audio mute, outgoing video mute, incoming audiomute, and/or incoming video mute. As used herein, an “outgoing mute”(applying to both audio and video) refers to ceasing to provide audioand/or video to external systems. For example, an outgoing audio mute ina videoconference may result in a remote videoconferencing systems nolonger receiving or providing audio from the local videoconferencingsystem for playback. Such a mute may be implemented by turning off localmicrophones, ceasing to provide audio to the remote videoconferencingsystems, providing signals to the remote videoconferencing systems tocease playback of audio from the local videoconferencing system, etc.Similar descriptions apply to outgoing video mutes. Conversely, an“incoming mute” (applying to both audio and video) refers to ceasing toprovide audio and/or video playback. For example, an incoming audio mutein a videoconference may result in all audio playback (e.g., from othervideoconferencing systems) ceasing at the local videoconferencinglocation. Similarly, an incoming video mute in a videoconference maydisable display of video at the local location (e.g., from remotevideoconferencing systems). Note that incoming mutes may also apply tocontent provided locally (e.g., including audio or video, such asbackground music, provided by the local system).

However, in some embodiments, only a subset of the above options may beprovided. For example, when using a system that only provides contentfrom external sources (e.g., satellite or cable TV), outgoing mutes maynot be applicable, so the available mute actions may only be incomingmutes (although they may be simply labeled “audio mute” and “video mute”rather than including the “incoming” portion). Even in contexts whereincoming and outgoing mutes are possible, e.g., videoconferencing, itmay be desirable to only show one or the other of types of mutes. Forexample, in audio or video conferencing, mutes are generally understoodto be outgoing, so incoming mutes may not be shown for simplicity.

Note that the functionality may not be restricted to mute actions. Forexample, a user may be able to reassign the functionality of the muteinput to another function. As a specific example, a user may wish toswitch between two different channels (e.g., during commercials, such aswhen watching two sports games). Accordingly, the user may assign themute input to switch to either of the channels. Additionally, the usermay assign this functionality based on context. For example, the usermay assign a particular set of mute functions (e.g., outgoing video andaudio mute) as the functionality of the mute input while performingdedicated functionality, such as during a videoconference for avideoconferencing system. However, the user may assign a completelydifferent function for the mute input (e.g., escaping menus) while inthe context of a menu or user interface.

In addition, the user may be able to assign both mute actions andadditional actions to the mute input. For example, the user may assignthe mute input to perform an incoming audio mute and change the channeland pressing it again may undo the incoming audio mute and return to thecurrent channel. Thus, the functionality of the mute input may becompletely customizable. Similar to above, the user may also assign suchmixed functionality based on contexts.

In 1506, user input selecting the mute input from the remote controldevice may be received. Accordingly, in 1508, one or more actions may beperformed based on the mute input and the first functionality. Wherefunctionality for a plurality of different contexts is assigned, themethod may involve determining the context and then performing theappropriate functionality based on the context. For example, if the muteinput is specified as performing incoming and outgoing audio and videomutes during a videoconference, but only performing incoming mutes whilein a menu, the appropriate functionality may be performed based on thecontext.

FIGS. 16A-16C—Exemplary Interfaces Corresponding to FIG. 15

FIGS. 16A-16C are exemplary user interfaces which correspond to oneembodiment of the method of FIG. 15. More specifically, these userinterfaces correspond to an embodiment involving videoconferencing.These graphical user interfaces are provided as examples only and do notlimit any of the embodiments described above.

FIG. 16A illustrate an exemplary user interface where the user hasselected the “mute” icon in the top level menu.

FIG. 16B illustrates an exemplary user interface where the user hasentered the mute submenu. In this instance, the user has selected theaudio mute, where the user may “press OK to mute the microphone”(representing an outgoing audio mute). In this particular embodiment,this mute is “sticky” such that pressing the mute input will result inperforming or undoing the audio mute, depending on the current state(either on or off).

FIG. 16C illustrates an exemplary user interface where the user hasselected the audio and video mute, where the user may “press OK to mutethe camera and the microphone”. Similar to above, this setting may applyto the functionality of the mute input, such that the audio and video ismuted (or unmuted) when the mute input is provided, e.g., until the userchanges the setting again.

As described above, further videoconferencing actions (e.g., includingadditional mute actions) may be specified in such a user interface.

Embodiments of a subset or all (and portions or all) of the above may beimplemented by program instructions stored in a memory medium or carriermedium and executed by a processor.

In some embodiments, a computer system at a respective participantlocation may include a memory medium(s) on which one or more computerprograms or software components according to one embodiment of thepresent invention may be stored. For example, the memory medium maystore one or more programs that are executable to perform the methodsdescribed herein. The memory medium may also store operating systemsoftware, as well as other software for operation of the computersystem.

Further modifications and alternative embodiments of various aspects ofthe invention may be apparent to those skilled in the art in view ofthis description. Accordingly, this description is to be construed asillustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled inthe art the general manner of carrying out the invention. It is to beunderstood that the forms of the invention shown and described hereinare to be taken as embodiments. Elements and materials may besubstituted for those illustrated and described herein, parts andprocesses may be reversed, and certain features of the invention may beutilized independently, all as would be apparent to one skilled in theart after having the benefit of this description of the invention.Changes may be made in the elements described herein without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the invention as described in the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method, comprising: receiving first user input selecting a mute input from a remote control device, wherein the mute input is the only mute input of the remote control device; determining a first context of the first user input in response to receiving the first user input; based on the first context, selecting a first mute action from among a plurality of mute actions, wherein different mute actions are selected for different contexts; performing the first mute action based on said selecting the first mute action; receiving second user input selecting the mute input from the remote control device; determining a second context of the second user input in response to receiving the second user input; based on the second context, selecting a second mute action from among the plurality of mute actions, wherein the second mute action is different from the first mute action, and wherein the second mute action is a user-specified action that is distinct from a default mute action; and performing the second mute action based on said selecting the second mute action.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to receiving the first user input and the second user input: displaying a user interface for customizing the mute input of the remote control device, wherein the user interface provides two or more different mute actions that are selectable by a user; receiving third user input specifying the first mute action from the two or more different mute actions for the mute input of the remote control device.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the third user input also specifies the first context for the first mute action.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first mute action is a custom mute action selected by a user, wherein the second mute action is a default mute action.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user input is received during a videoconference, wherein the first context comprises a context within a videoconference.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first mute action comprises an audio mute action.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first mute action comprises a video mute action.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first mute action comprises an audio and video mute action.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first mute action comprises an outgoing audio and/or video mute action.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of mute actions comprise a plurality of: an outgoing audio mute videoconferencing action; an outgoing video mute videoconferencing action; an incoming audio mute videoconferencing action; or an incoming video mute videoconferencing action.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote control device is a simple remote control, comprising: directional inputs for up, down, left, and right; confirmation input for confirming a selection; and a mute input for muting a videoconference.
 12. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote control device is a simple remote control, wherein the simple remote control comprises no more than 8 inputs.
 13. A non-transitory, computer accessible memory medium storing program instructions that are executable by a processor to: receive first user input selecting a mute input from a remote control device, wherein the mute input is the only mute input of the remote control device; determine a first context of the first user input in response to receiving the first user input; based on the first context, select a first mute action from among a plurality of mute actions, wherein different mute actions are selected for different contexts; perform the first mute action based on said selecting the first mute action; receive second user input selecting the mute input from the remote control device; determine a second context of the second user input in response to receiving the second user input; based on the second context, select a second mute action from among the plurality of mute actions, wherein the second mute action is different from the first mute action, and wherein the second mute action is a user-specified action that is distinct from a default mute action; and perform the second mute action based on said selecting the second mute action.
 14. The non-transitory, computer accessible memory medium of claim 13, wherein the program instructions are further executable to, prior to receiving the first user input and the second user input: display a user interface for customizing the mute input of the remote control device, wherein the user interface provides two or more different mute actions that are selectable by a user; receive third user input specifying the first mute action from the two or more different mute actions for the mute input of the remote control device.
 15. The non-transitory, computer accessible memory medium of claim 14, wherein the third user input also specifies the first context for the first mute action.
 16. The non-transitory, computer accessible memory medium of claim 13, wherein the first mute action is a custom mute action selected by a user, wherein the second mute action is a default mute action.
 17. The non-transitory, computer accessible memory medium of claim 13, wherein the first user input is received during a videoconference, wherein the first context comprises a context within a videoconference.
 18. The non-transitory, computer accessible memory medium of claim 13, wherein the plurality of mute actions comprise a plurality of: an outgoing audio mute videoconferencing action; an outgoing video mute videoconferencing action; an incoming audio mute videoconferencing action; or an incoming video mute videoconferencing action.
 19. A videoconferencing system, comprising: at least one display; at least one camera; at least one audio output; at least one audio input; a remote control device; and a videoconferencing unit coupled to the at least one display, at least one camera, at least one audio output, at least one audio input, and remote control device, wherein the videoconferencing unit is configured to: receive first user input selecting a mute input from a remote control device, wherein the mute input is the only mute input of the remote control device; determine a first context of the first user input in response to receiving the first user input; based on the first context, select a first mute action from among a plurality of mute actions, wherein different mute actions are selected for different contexts; perform the first mute action based on said selecting the first mute action; receive second user input selecting the mute input from the remote control device; determine a second context of the second user input in response to receiving the second user input; based on the second context, select a second mute action from among the plurality of mute actions, wherein the second mute action is different from the first mute action, and wherein the second mute action is a user-specified action that is distinct from a default mute action; and perform the second mute action based on said selecting the second mute action.
 20. The videoconferencing system of claim 19, wherein the videoconferencing unit is further configured to, prior to receiving the first user input and the second user input: display a user interface for customizing the mute input of the remote control device on the at least one display, wherein the user interface provides two or more different mute actions that are selectable by a user; receive third user input specifying the first mute action from the two or more different mute actions for the mute input of the remote control device. 